The present invention relates generally to caster assemblies for easing movement of large and/or heavy items.
People often must move heavy and or bulky items such as furniture, boxes, etc. A wide variety of tools and equipment to make moving such items easier have been developed, but such equipment is itself often bulky, inconvenient, or unavailable at the time it is needed.
One such equipment is a caster. As is known, a caster is comprised of a wheel that may swivel to be oriented in any direction. The wheel is mounted via an axle to the bottom of a cart or other object to be moved. This is typically done via fasteners such the caster is mounted in a permanent fashion. Many casters are lockable so that once an item is in a desired position, it can be fixed in that position.
Typical casters have a number of drawbacks. In order to provide sufficient support, the casters typically are permanently mounted to an item via fasteners. In this manner, the castors can withstand the forces and torques applied on the caster structure when the item is moved. However, this attachment also creates an inability to quickly place or install a caster on an item to move the item. Furthermore, the casters themselves are bulky and are rarely considered to be aesthetically pleasing. Thus in many instances a user does not want the caster permanently installed on the item. The present invention overcomes these problems, providing an easy, convenient tool for rolling or sliding large or bulky items.